Improvement in valves for water-closets



an STATES JOSHUA REGESTER, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.

IMPROVEMENT IN VALVES FOR WATER-CLOSETS.

Specification forming part oi' Letters Patent No. 57,570, dated August 28, 1866.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JosHUA REGESTER, of the city and county of Baltimore, State of Maryland, have invented a new and Improved Valve for Water'Closets; and I do hereby declare that the tollowing is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being' had toV the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figure l is a top view of the valve and its box with the cover removed. Fig. 2 is a lonL gitudinal section, taken in the vertical plane indicated by red line a' x, in Fig. l, showing the valve fully open. Fig. 3 is a similar section, showing the valve fully closed. Fig. 4 is a similar section, showing the valve in the act of closing. Fig.5 is a transverse section,taken through the valve and its water-ways, in the vertical plane indicated by red line yy in Fig. 1. Fig. Gis a side view of the valve removed from its box.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures.

This invention relates to an improvement in the construction of valves which are to be applied to water-ways leading` to the basins of water-closets, and which are designed for cutting off the ow of water to the basins after they have been used.

Theinvention consists in arranging within a valve-box through which water flows to a basin a cupped valve which is supported upon the half-round end of a rocking bar to which a lever is applied, and which is so constructed that the force of water in the service-pipe shall not act upon it with undue pressure and render it difficult to lift it from its seat; and while this is the case, provision is made for effecting the gentle but certain closing of thevalve by its own gravity and the weight or pressure of water above it, as will be hereinafter described.

The invention also consists in obviating the uneven wearing away of the lifting-edges of the rocking bar, which is used for lifting the valve from its seat, by so constructing the valvestem that a solid tlat bottom surface is caused to act upon said lifting-edges, as will be hereinafter described.

To enable others skilled in the art to understand my invention, I will describe its construction and operation.

The valve is arranged to work in a box or Water-way, which consists of an upper cylindrical chamber, A, into which water tlows from a pipe, c, and a lower cylindrical chamber, B, from which water iows through the pipe b. The pipe or connection a is located above the valve-seat c, and the pipe-oonnection b is located below t-he valve-seat, so that the valve must be raised from its seat befoae water is allowed to iow through the. valve-chambers.

A tubular bearing, O, is formed on one side of the lower portion, B, of the valve-box, for receiving a rocking bar, D, the inner end of which is sen1i-cylindrical, as shown at d, and supports the valve, and serves as a means for lifting this val've from its seat when the bar is rocked either toward the right or left. This bar D is suitably packed in its tubular bearing, so as to prevent leakage, and to its outer end the hand-lever should be applied for rocking it.

The upper end of the valve-chamber'A is provided with a cup-shaped screw-cap, A', which, when removed, will allow access to the valve, and when screwed upon its chamber, as shown in the drawings, will prevent the escape of water.

The upper end of the chamber A has an inside ange, e, which, with the flange or valveseat c, forms a support for keeping the valve in its proper position and allowing it to rise or fall freely.

The valve G consists of an upper cylindrical cup, g, having a short screw-stem, g', projecting from the center of its closed bottom, for receiving the ribbed neck or bottom guide, h, and the packing z. which latter may be a circular piece of leather confined between the two portions g andh, as shown in the drawings. This packing or valve-face i is not greater in diameter than the cupped portion g, and offers no resistance to the influx of water into the lower chamber of the valve-box.

The neck or lower portion of the valve has an upper cylindrical portion corresponding in diameter to the inner diameter of the ilange c, and the bottom of this neck also has a cylindrical portion formed on it, as shown at j, the bottom of which rests upon the half-round portion d, and is madeLtlat and solid, as shown in -the drawings, for the purpose of preventing "grooves from being form ed on the lifting-edges of said half-round portion. This neck is ribbed, as shown, for the purpose of affording a bearing against the edge of the flange c when the valve is raised from its seat.

The cylindrical cupped portion g has Hattened places Zformed on its circumference, for the purpose of allowing water to flow gently above it and into the space within it, for the purpose of compelling` the valve to take its seat when released from the lifting-edges of the portion d. It is not intended that the dattened places lon the portion g shall allow the water to rush above this portion and force it down suddenly to its seat, as this would cause a thump and jar which would injure the joints of the pipes. y

When the bar D is t-urned lone quarter around, as shown in Fig. 2, the valve will be raised from its seat, and water will ow through the valve-box, as shown by the red arrows in Fig. 5. When the valve is released from the lifter d its weight will cause it to descend slowly until the passage is closed by the cylindrical portion just below the packing c', as indicated in Fig. 4, when the flow of water upward through the small spaces Z will cause the water to force the valve to its seat and hold it down, as shown in Fig. 3.

It will be seen that instantly the valve begns'to rise from its seat water will begin to ow very slowly through the small space which surrounds the upper portion of the neck of the valve. This will give motion to the stream' before the full head of water is let l on by further raising the valve. In closing Y this valve the samething occurs. The cylindrical portion ot the valve-neck, which enters the valve-opening, is made so short that when the force of Water is cut ofi' by it the packing i has a very short distance t0 move to reach its seat; consequently there will be no sudden shock or sudden closing 0f the valves.

I am aware that Thomas Grundy secured a patent June 26, 1860, on an improvement in 'water-closets, and therefore I do not claim a solid plunger working in an inverted cup, as shown in his said patent. Nor d0 I cla-im lifting a plunger by an eccentric, as also shown in said patent; but,

Having described myinvention, WhatIclai n1 as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,

is- 1. Constructing a valve, G, of the parts g, h, and i, and arranging it within a boX through which water iiows, substantially as described. 2. The combination of the enlarged cupped portion g, having iiattened spaces l, and the re- 

